MBA at Columbia Business School vs Chicago Booth School of Business

MBA at Columbia Business School vs MBA at Chicago Booth School of Business

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Choosing between an MBA at Columbia Business School and Chicago Booth School of Business depends on your priorities. Columbia's program emphasizes finance, consulting, and New York's business hub advantage, offering extensive networking opportunities. Chicago Booth is known for its analytical approach, emphasizing economics and flexible curriculum, situated in a strong business city. Columbia provides a robust finance and consulting network, while Booth offers a rigorous academic environment. Your decision should align with your desired specialization, preferred campus culture, and location. Columbia leans towards finance and consulting, whereas Booth excels in academic rigor, guiding your choice based on your career goals.

Overview Comparison
Columbia Business SchoolUniversity of Chicago Booth School of Business
ProgramsPG Programs -5
PG Programs -15
Doctorate Programs -9
Cost to StudyAverage Tuition Fees  68160
[For PG Program]
Hostel + Meal - 21816 Per Year
Average Tuition Fees  72000
[For PG Program]
Hostel + Meal - 15726 Per Year

Top Courses Comparison

Top Courses Comparison

ranking# 9 for Business by US News 2025
# 20 for Business by QS World University 2025
# 11 for Business by Times Higher Education 2023
# 17 for Business by QS World University 2025
# 13 for Business by Times Higher Education 2023
application--
exam scoresGMAT - 732/800GRE - 324/340Duolingo - 135/160IELTS - 7/9PTE - 70/90TOEFL - 104/120
Admission Criteria/Better to Have


 



documents required#Letter of Recommendation + Statement of Purpose#Letter of Recommendation + Statement of Purpose
application datesJun 17, 2025 (Final Decision Date For January 2026 Intake Round 1)
Aug 13, 2025 (Application Deadline For January 2026 Intake Round 2)
Aug 13, 2025 (Final Decision Date For January 2026 Intake Round 2)
Sep 3, 2025 (Application Deadline For August 2026 Intake Round 1)
Jan 6, 2026 (Application Deadline For August 2026 Intake Round 2)
Mar 26, 2026 (Application Deadline For August 2026 Intake Round 3)
Sep 16, 2025 (Round 1 Application Deadline For 2026 Intake)
Dec 4, 2025 (Round 1 Application Deadline For 2026 Intake)
Jan 6, 2026 (Round 2 Application Deadline For 2026 Intake)
Mar 26, 2026 (Round 2 Decision Date For 2026 Intake)
Mar 26, 2026 (Round 3 Application Deadline For 2026 Intake)
Apr 2, 2026 (Round 3 Decision Date For 2026 Intake)
Comparison Notes

UC Booth Business School ranked #3 as per US News 2021 Best Business School Rankings while as per Financial Times MBA rankings 2020 ranked UC Booth School of Business #10. 

Columbia Business School performed better at Financial Times MBA rankings 2020 and scored a position of #8 while among US News 2021 Best Business School rankings, it ranked #8. 

Apart from rankings, now let us look at the other aspects to consider when planning to choose between an MBA at UC Booth School of Business and an MBA at Columbia Business School. 

  • 90% of the MBA class at Columbia Business School was offered employment within 3 months of graduation. However, 95% of the MBA class at Chicago Booth was offered employment within 3 months of graduation.
  • The salary increase observed by MBA graduates of the Chicago Booth School of Business was better than Columbia Business School. The former observed a hike of 123% while the latter saw a salary increase of 115%.
  • The location of both the business schools are premier and ensure great future aspects to the graduates. Studying in New York City or California, the choice will highly depend on a student’s budget, lifestyle choices, and future aspects that they wish to discover. Though both cities offer equal opportunities to MBA graduates. 
  • Getting admissions to both the universities is equally difficult and scores required to get into either of the two business schools are equally competitive

Choosing between MBA at Columbia Business School or UC Chicago Booth is highly dependent on a student’s preferences. Hence, having the above-mentioned aspects into consideration can help students to make a more informed choice.